LiAngelo and LaMelo Ball sign professional basketball contracts with Lithuanian club

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LaVar Ball, center, father of Los Angeles Lakers rookie guard Lonzo Ball, with two sons LiAngelo, LaMello, during an NBA game. The younger Ball brothers just signed a professional contract to play in Lithuania. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) ORG XMIT: CAJH108

LiAngelo and LaMelo Ball, the younger brothers of Lakers rookie point guard Lonzo Ball, signed professional contracts on Monday with Lithuanian club Prienu Vytautas, a first-division Lithuanian league, according to several published reports and a social media post from Big Baller Brand.

Both are expected to report to the club in January, according to reports.

The younger Ball brothers signed with agent Harrison Gaines last week, who is also the agent for Lonzo, ending any chances that LiAngelo could return to college, or that 16-year-old LaMelo would ever play at UCLA, where he was a 2019 commit.

It's not about the money for the Ball Brothers. They have a passion to play Basketball and to experience playing as pros was the Goal. They have accomplished this mission and are excited to be playing on the same team to top it off. The Big Baller way! pic.twitter.com/QOu6QCtMdf

“We engaged in serious talks with several teams, and Vytautas made the most sense as LaMelo and LiAngelo work to develop as professionals and set a foundation for their careers,” Gaines told Yahoo Sports. “It was critical to find a situation in a competitive league that works with both of their short- and long-term goals.”

Over the last week father LaVar Ball indicated his family and agent were looking at overseas deals so that his two sons could play together. Liangelo, 16, is believed to be the youngest American basketball player to sign a professional contract.

Vytautas is in the Lithuanian (LKL) league and according to ESPN, is reportedly a fledging franchise that hopes to capitalize on the Ball name and popularity, and for the Ball’s, it is a chance to continue to play basketball. It is believed the brothers signed a one-year contract.

LaVar Ball pulled his youngest son LiAngelo, 16, from Chino Hills high school in October vowing to home school him and get him ready for UCLA, which was more than two years away.

LaMelo Ball, 16 will be the youngest basketball player from the United States to ever play Professionally Overseas. pic.twitter.com/r7lXyYUpwv

However, LiAngelo, who was a freshman at UCLA, was suspended indefinitely after being arrested in China along with two of his teammates, Cody Riley and Jalen Hill, for shoplifting — charges that were later dropped — allowing the three players to return home.

LaVar Ball, eight-games into the suspension, complained that the suspension at UCLA was too severe, and that his son was leaving the school to pursue other opportunities.

That opportunity has led the patriarch of the Ball family to send his two sons to a town of 10,000 in Southern Lithuanian, where few speak English.